Manchester United news: Erik Ten Hag has apologized for his team’s decision ahead of Manchester United’s clash with Sheriff in the Europa League match.
Moldovan fans arrived at Chisinău airport to greet Cristiano Ronaldo and his United team as they prepared to fly to the Moldovan capital on Wednesday. The fans of the feet went to by the star of Portugal.
Fans are hoping to see Ronaldo in action in Thursday’s group stage match following the loss to Real Sociedad. But Ten Hag has not confirmed whether the Portuguese will start or come off the bench.
He apologized to the Moldovan fans saying, “I’m sorry, the Moldovan fans will have to wait until tomorrow.”
Soccer fans are desperate to take a selfie or autograph Cristiano Ronaldo after the game is over. But Ten Hag isn’t ready to let his squad stay with the fans, as they have to fly back to Manchester as soon as possible.
The 52-year-old coach said: “After the game we have to go straight to the airport and go back to Manchester because the players have international duties and they have to be prepared for them.”
Is Ronaldo a starter or not?
Ronaldo is expected to lead United’s forward line against Sheriff because Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are out injured for now. Ten Hag has admitted that the match is a must for his team after suffering a shocking defeat at home to Real Sociedad in their first Europa League group stage game last Thursday.
The Dutchman addressed the importance of winning this game: “Every game is the same, we have to win.” He also added: “It is clear that when you lose the first game, you have to win the second game, so we know what our task is.”
This game is United’s last before the international break, as Sunday’s match against Leeds has been postponed due to the death of the British queen.
Ten Hag will try to introduce a stronger team on the field than the team that lost to Sociedad. Speaking about his team selection, Ten Hag revealed, “We always play against a strong team, so obviously tomorrow we will play against a strong team.”
Manchester United news: Ten Hag’s praise for the Sheriff
Ten Hag has great respect for Sheriff. In this regard, he spoke: “We have to make it our game, we are aware of it. We have to be ready and prepared for this game. They are a serious and decent opponent and we have to play our best to win”.
Sheriff has won the last six Moldovan league titles in a row. They have a great record against the big clubs in Europe. The most notable achievement was beating Champion Real Madrid at the Bernabéu last year. They also defeated Shakhtar Donetsk.
This season, they have also started their campaign with a 3-0 win against Neil Lennon’s Omonia Nicosia on Thursday. On his strong opponent, Ten Hag said: “They beat Real Madrid and they beat Shakhtar Donetsk last year, so they are capable of doing that.”
The postponement of English Premier League matches has created chaos in the Premier League fixture. In the next game on October 28 against Sheriff, Man Utd will have to go through a difficult and hectic schedule. If they win this match, they will have a big advantage for the future match.
